NEW DELHI: India Inc’s capital expenditure (capex) plans show moderation in 2026-27 (FY27), with aggregate intentions falling 16.5 per cent to ₹9.55 trillion from the provisional ₹11.44 trillion estimated for 2025-26 (FY26). This is according to the National Statistics Office’s (NSO’s) second forward-looking survey on private corporate sector capex investment intentions, covering October–December 2025.
The implied 16.5 per cent decline in planned new-asset spending among the 5,366 large enterprises surveyed signals a more cautious investment stance, even as per-enterprise capex on new assets is projected to edge up from ₹79.4 crore in FY26 to ₹ 85.2 crore in FY27.
“The realisation of these investment plans may depend on several factors such as market conditions, availability of finance, the policy environment, international economic volatility, and the overall economic outlook,” the report cautioned.
Moderation is also visible at the micro level.
A fixed panel of 3,819 enterprises reported unweighted aggregate capex of ₹6,11,161 crore provisionally for FY26 and ₹6,11,412 crore intended for FY27 — a modest 1.9 per cent increase in intended capex for FY27 compared with their actual spending of ₹6 trillion in 2024-25. Weighted panel estimates place total new-asset capex at ₹11.43 trillion for FY26 and ₹9.55 trillion for FY27.
Not all firms are committing to fresh investments. Around 21.7 per cent of surveyed enterprises reported no capex plans for FY27, and more than half of these indicated zero planned expenditure, underscoring caution within Corporate India — even as a segment of firms continues to expand capacity (29 per cent).
The pullback in aggregate capex intentions is not uniform across sectors. Manufacturing remains the largest destination for private investment, but its share in total new-asset capex fell from 50.17 per cent (around ₹5.74 trillion) in FY26 to 44.35 per cent (₹4.24 trillion) in FY27. Information and communication services — which include data centres, telecommunications, and digital platforms — also saw a mild moderation, with their share easing from 16.38 per cent (₹1.87 trillion) in FY26 to 14.38 per cent (₹1.37 trillion) in FY27.
In contrast, planned spending in electricity, gas, steam, and air-conditioning supply rose sharply, with the sector’s share in aggregate capex jumping from 8.96 per cent in FY26 (₹1.02 trillion) to 14.94 per cent in FY27 (₹1.43 trillion).
Machinery and equipment remain the primary focus, accounting for 64 per cent of provisional new-asset capex in FY26 and projected to rise above 70 per cent in FY27.
Regarding financing, nearly two-thirds of capex is funded from internal accruals, just over 23 per cent from domestic debt, and foreign debt and foreign direct investment together contribute slightly above 3 per cent in FY26.
Investment strategies among surveyed enterprises remain predominantly conservative. About 48.63 per cent plan capex on core foundational assets like plant and machinery, 38.36 per cent focus on value addition through upgrades to existing assets, and 14.54 per cent target strategic high-growth opportunistic assets.
Debt-related strategies are minimal, with only 3.2 per cent adopting explicit debt approaches and 1.03 per cent focusing on distressed assets or non-performing loans.
Source: Business Standard
